Friday February 27, 2009 1:09 pm

Harnessed Hamster Produces Energy

Dr. Zhong Lin Wang of Georgia University’s Nano Research Group built some tiny flexible jackets equipped with wires and plugged hamsters in while they were running in their wheels. She found that one rodent could produce a tiny amount of AC power equal to 1/20 of an AA battery output. That means it would take about 1,000 of the little critters to generate enough power for a mobile phone. Dr. Wang believes that the same technology could be fitted into clothes within about 5 years for larger animals and humans. But gee, maybe she should consult Ed Begley Jr., who spends 10 minutes on his pedal-powered generator each morning to make toast, before entrepreneurs decide to set up animal sweatshops.